This invention relates to the application of liquid sealant to bituminous or other composition surfaces, such as driveways, walks, and the like. More particularly, the invention relates to equipment for use by a homeowner, for example, for applying liquid sealant such as a water-based asphaltic sealing compound that is initially in viscous liquid form to the surface, and especially to an attachment that may be used in conjunction with a garden and lawn spreader for granular fertilizer, seed, and the like, to spread and smooth the liquid that is initially loaded in the hopper of the spreader.
Driveways and walkways on both residential and commercial property in many parts of the country are formed of a bituminous composition comprising a mixture of an asphaltic compound and gravel, sand, or the like. While this material provides an excellent driveway and utility surface for many purposes, it requires a periodic application of a sealing compound (such as every two years). In the past, most of these sealants have been an oil-based asphaltic compound; however, in recent years, water-based compounds have become available. The sealant comes in the form of a viscous liquid that is normally applied with a broom, brush, mop, or other hand tool that requires frequent dipping into a container of the compound and spreading and smoothing the material manually over the entire surface to be sealed.
Since the sealing operation is preferably performed in hot weather, it is a difficult, laborious and time-consuming task, particularly for homeowners in residential areas who normally would not be able to justify the purchase of professional application machinery.
Nevertheless, the periodic sealing procedure is necessary since otherwise water penetrates through cracks and holes and in cold weather expands and breaks up the surface.
The apparatus of the present invention simplifies the sealing operation described above and affords other features and advantages heretofore not obtainable.